I have always enjoyed this event. It reminds me of the old time dinner and entertainment scene that…read moreyou see in old movies. On stage is Elysabeth Alfano - Creator, Executive Producer, Producer & Host, and four guests, each with a specialty, usually related to the arts, and one of the guests is always a chef from a local establishment. My very first one, March 26, 2012, was with the Green Mill Poetry Slam founder Mark Smith ( who gave a wonderful performance), Chicago blues legend Billy Branch performing "Hoochie Coochie Man" on his harmonica, Naomi Beckwith Curator at the MCA, and Matt Troost from the restaurant Three Aces, making gnocchi and ribollita, and Guest artist Nicholas Barron performed that night as well! Elizabeth starts out interviewing each person, but also encourages conversation between the guests. In this case (March 2012) the guests got up and performed, and it was so wonderful. Then the chef gives a cooking lesson on the video monitor of the meal that he is preparing for the guests and then the meal is brought out with a tasting of wine to go with each and Voges Chocolates are served for dessert. It was a night to remember! So much fun, and interesting! PS - I posted the Fear No Art presents The Dinner Party's May event here on Yelp, not because I have anything to do with it, because I don't, but because they don't seem to have a presence on Yelp, and I was doing a review of it, so thought that I should give them a presence here.

Wow, not at all what we expected. City Winery is a great venue but the Fear No Art dinner party is…read morenot the best way to appreciate the space. The tickets were $40/pp (plus service charge) and promised wine tastings, dinner, dessert and great panelists. First of all there was 1 wine tasting (about an ounce of wine) other drinks need to be purchased. The food was tasty but very small & we had to wait and wait some more for it to be served. The panelists were entertaining but seemed much more interested in talking among themselves than to the audience. Tried to tweet in questions but they were not addressed. Not a great evening overall.

I've lived in Ravenswood for nearly decade and a half but I've never been to the Ravenswood Art…read moreWalk, how wild is that? I almost thought this weekend it wasn't going to work with the rain but luckily it cleared up and rather than just hang out in our living room I packed up the baby and we headed down the block. We didn't visit any of the studios; the weather is a little iffy and I didn't want to be too far away in case it started to turn. Also some of the studios don't seem to be in accessible buildings, which means I wouldn't have been able to get the stroller into them since there were stairs with no ramp. The "main" part of the festival, at Berteau & Ravenswood, has booths set up for various artists to sell. Some are local and some are not I think. There was also a structure constructed--temporarily, I think--for children to climb. There were several food trucks and a couple booths set up in the parking lot of the building there as well, and a band playing. There was a nice variety of artists in their tents, selling textiles, pottery, paintings, photography, jewelry, and so on. Next year I hope to visit again, especially if we still live here. And hopefully the weather will be nice so that we can walk the full thing instead of park for fear of a downpour!

A weekend event celebrating and showcasing the artists of Ravenswood. There is the opportunity to…read moremeet some of the artists in their studios. There was an outdoor market and blocks of studios and galleries . A selection of food trucks offered a variety of choices. There was live music throughout the event. It was easy to spend an afternoon in Ravenswood enjoying the creative talents in Ravenswood.

First a clarification. This place is called the Allstate Arena these days and no matter what you…read morecall it the acoustics were TERRIBLE last time I was there! But perhaps there is hope. Not too long ago I met a guy who said that he worked with a company that designs acoustics for large forums and he told me that his company had recently reworked the United Center. I didn't ask him about the Allstate Arena - but perhaps they worked things out there. Seems like quite a challenge as this building was not designed for concerts!

Huge convention center! This is a great place to catch a show. However, since it so large, tickets…read moreto sit near the front row tend to be expensive. They have good food and decent licour prizes. I saw one of the best concerts here in my life: SADE. Amazing.

Used to love going to St Al's fest each year. Great to see a traditional German parish continuing…read moreto embrace their roots even as the neighborhood has changed. Unfortunately, each year, it seems to become more of a standard Chicago street festival and less of an Oktoberfest. In 2021, they got rid of the big tent (and it rained, so we could've used it!), and the beer was Sam Adams - no more German beers. The only thing making it an Oktoberfest was the one stand with brats and kraut and the Polkaholics playing up front (which I do love). Looking elsewhere for a better fest this year. Hopefully St Al's will go back to basics soon. I'll be back if they do.

Great festival. It's not a authentic German Oktoberfest, but more of a traditional Chicago Street…read morefestival with a German twist. Mixture of German and American beers combined with partial selection of German and typical street fest fare. So minus points for that, but bonus points in that it is more affordable than the Oktoberfest in Lincoln Square and the bands, vendors, and beer tents have grown and improved in quality each year. It is extremely crowded during peak times (Saturday night), but so is every other popular street festival. Also, it's completely run by church volunteers and the money goes to great causes...so kudos to that. It's very family friendly during the day time...LOTS of babies.

Michael & UpBeat were EXACTLY what we needed for our wedding. Michael set up multiple phone calls…read morewith us before the wedding to go over details and understand what we wanted for our day. The band set up rehearsals just to practice our exact set list. We decided on Piano & Violin for the ceremony, with additional Piano for cocktail hour. The full band played a wonderful and creative 3 hour set during our reception. Upbeat set up all of our sound equipment and did a comprehensive sound check early that day. They even had a sound tech on their staff. Upbeat customized our wedding to our exact requests. They ensured to perfect our precessional, recessional, and prelude music. We requested contemporary love songs in which they rocked!! Our cocktail hour was perfect and the guests were complementing how talented the musicians were. Michael was our emcee for the nights events and ensured to follow my timeline to a T. He checked in multiple times with our wedding planner, as well as me and my husband. The 3-hour reception was full of energy, talent, and craftsmanship. Upbeat performed multiple medleys allowing songs to flow seamlessly into each other. The vocalists were top tier and were able to sing a wide variety of genres. The instrumentalists all played a critical role in the feel of the party! I 100% recommend adding the horn to your band! It made every song feel rich & full. Shout out to Reid Spears, piano & vocals, THE TALENT IS POURING OUT OF HIM. If you're thinking about a live band, DO IT. This band is worth every penny!!! We will forever be a fan of UpBeat! Maddy & Sean

After my sister had UpBeat at her wedding, it was a no-brainer that I would hire them for mine…read more Michael and the whole crew bring the kind of expertise, enthusiasm and energy that you want in a band. They have an extensive repertoire of music to choose from and are extremely accommodating to any requests outside of their lineup. Every phone call and email is extremely thorough so you know exactly what to expect and then some. If we had to do it all over again, we'd choose Upbeat in a heartbeat.

I've been coming to the fest on and off for 20 year, always a summer highlight! The neighborhood…read moreis always inviting with new crafty and fun things, so many good restaurants and a joyous festival affirming life. Sometimes it can be quite crowded at night but that's part of the sweaty fun.

Even though I've lived three or four blocks away from Midsommerfest for a decade and a half, I've…read morenever been. I could be wrong--maybe it's just that it's in such close proximity--but this seems like one of ht major festivals in the city but I've never wanted to brave the crowds. I'm really glad I did this year because it was a good time. I walked over with the baby and when we arrived the Chicago Spirit Brigade was performing at the stage on Foster & Clark. Of course Chicago has a co-ed adult cheer team. And they were great! I am following them on Insta because I'd love to see them perform again. There were lots of vendors, both merchandise and food. One booth I liked a lot was the Floriography Fellows, who were making flower crows. I bought one for the babe and it was truly adorable. They also had a place for folks to sit and color to decompress since there's so much sensory overload happening all around. There was a water company of some sort that sponsored a water station. I wish I'd known because I'd have brought a water bottle. Luckily they had some cups there for those of us who didn't come prepared. I also stopped at the booth with glogg slushies (I think it was Simon's booth) and that was probably my biggest disappointment, because they were cash only. They had an ATM by the booth, but I was not about to spend $3 to have one. So rather than buy multiple I just got the one. I'm always pretty disappointed when places are cash only nowadays, unless it's like a single person doing a craft booth at a small fair or something. The band Sonic Healing was playing at one of the stages on a side street and we stopped to listen for a little while. They were really great. Dancing with my babygirl to some great music in the greatest city in the world really made for a pretty perfect Sunday evening.

I've been a member of the Metropolitan for a while but I rarely get to eat at the restaurant since…read moreI use it primarily as a coworking and meeting space when downtown. The views are always great especially in the evening but the food is actually quite tasty . My cup of French onion soup was quite hearty and the sandwich hit the spot. They are very accommodating for groups so it's a great place to meet friends , clients , board members .if you are ever there early stop by the bar to grab a drink as well.

I had a great dining experience here this evening for a reunion, hosted by a member of the club. As…read moreher guests, we were welcomed with a glass of bubbly upon arrival, which was such a nice touch. They also offered discounts for members. Throughout the evening, several club members stopped by to greet us, which made our group feel really warm and welcome. I ordered the truffle fries and lobster bisque, both of which were delicious. I'm on a mission to find the best truffle fries in Chicago, and these definitely rank high on my list!

How can you not like North Coast?!…read more This is hands down my favorite festival in Chicago. I was going even before they switched over from Union Park in Chicago to Seatgeek Stadium in Bridgeview/Summit. I will say the change at first sucked since it's easier to get down to the city, but truly after going here a few times this location is great! Very spacious, no sound bleed, and there are a lot of hotels in the area that a lot of attendees stay at. Two years ago I stayed at a nearby hotel which was great. This year my friends and I drove back and forth each day; it was fine, but I recommend staying somewhere nearby or within walking distance to avoid the clusterhell of Ubers after the fest ends! Ubers cannot get to the grounds, so you'll have to walk a while to get out of the area to connect with one. There are a lot of random drivers offering rides there, too, but you've got to be careful accepting rides from them since they're random people. I always make sure they have the Uber/lyft sticker and will ask them to pull up their profile. The one bad part of North Coast is the getting out of the fest after it ends. The parking lot is a total nightmare and finding an Uber is impossible since police close off a lot of roads within the residential areas, which sucks for residents, Ubers, and the attendees! But that's not the fest's fault, plus it's a nightmare after every festival ends trying to get out. The lineup for North Coast never disappoints, and the pricing is incredible. I think I paid around $250 for a 3-day pass which is such an amazing price. The employees and security here are always super nice and fun. It's more of a lowkey festival compared to other Chicago fests which I prefer. They have various drinks, food trucks, and retailers. I love the merch here so much! You already know I'll be going next year!

This festival was awesome…read more The good ---the musical artists. Being able to face one way and see Lupe Fiasco in concert and when his set ends being able to watch Nas & Damian Marley...wow! It was just amazing!!! Added bonus, I love Mayer Hawthorne! --how close you can get to the stage! I've never been so close to a music artist before. The people in the front could reach out and touch Lupe or Nas and everyone pays the same price for the ticket. Love it. --the atmosphere. Everyone is having so much fun!!! As one of the only sober people there, the entire grounds reeked of weed and everyone was passing it around openly...which led to a lot of people having fun... but also a lot of crazy dancers obviously on something a bit stronger & also some rude people. I loved being able to bring chairs/blankets/whatever and just chill earlier in the day for Mayer Hawthorne. The bad --the food options. I had a very overpriced plate of what they called Pad Thai that was $11 for some pretty gross food. I know, I know, the festival isn't about the food but goodness. They need more food options more readily available and better options. --they need more bathrooms! --the parking. There is none. Zero. We parked over a mile away. I wish there was some type of solution to the parking problem. --after the last show it's madness. As expected tons of people are leaving but it's dark and everyone is high or drunk so at the very least I need to bring a flashlight. --It was odd going to a lounge/bar to pick up our will call tickets. Not sure what was up with that. If groupon offers tickets again and they have another sweet lineup, I'm down!